AUBURN HILLS, Michigan (Ticker) -- The experience of Joe Dumars
was more valuable than the exuberance of the Toronto Raptors.

Dumars scored eight of his season-high 16 points in a decisive
third-quarter run and sparked the Detroit Pistons as they shook
off the worst offensive performance in franchise history with a
convincing 106-80 victory over the Raptors.

"If you've been around at all, you know how important Joe is to
our team," Detroit coach Alvin Gentry said. "He gives us
stability and he gives us a guy who can make shots, a guy who
can make big shots. You're talking about someone who has been
MVP in the NBA Finals. Just to have Joe be a stabilizing force
on the floor meant a lot to us."

The Pistons had lost six of their last seven games, including
Sunday's 85-64 debacle at San Antonio. They held a 50-49 lead
over the youthful Raptors with 9:41 left in the third quarter
when the 14-year shooting guard took over.

The 35-year-old Dumars, who had been averaging just 7.8 points
per contest, drained a pair of 3-pointers and a 14-foot jumper
during a 19-8 run that opened a 69-57 bulge with 3:24 left.

"When we pass the ball and scream for each other, we're going to
get good shots," said Dumars, who is retiring after this season.
"It creates trust between teammates. That's what we have to do.
A night like this is a step in that direction."

Dumars capped the spurt with a steal and perfect feed to Grant
Hill for an uncontested dunk. Hill had one of his finest
all-around games of the season with 14 points, a team-leading
nine rebounds and 10 assists.

"It's a weird game," Hill said. "You can't really figure it
out. We had good looks and open shots (against San Antonio). We
just didn't make them. Today we had good looks, open shots and
we made them. Big difference."

Jerry Stackhouse scored 18 points off the bench for Detroit,
which shot a sparkling 55 percent (42-of-76) from the field
after making just 26 percent against the Spurs.

"There's no magic potion," added Gentry. "If we make shots,
we're a pretty good team. I've said that all along. Tonight,
we shot 55 percent. (If we do that), we'll be in the game
against any team we play."

John Wallace collected 14 points and Kevin Willis and Doug
Christie each added 12 for the Raptors, who had their modest
two-game winning streak snapped.

Toronto rookie guard Vince Carter cooled off with just seven
points on 3-of-11 shooting, one game after collecting 27 points
against Vancouver on Sunday.

Detroit improved to 12-1 all-time against Toronto. The Pistons
held a commanding 46-28 advantage on the boards and used a
tenacious defense to force 20 turnovers.

The Raptors shot 40 percent (31-of-77), including 3-of-13 from
beyond the arc.

Dumars drained a season-high four 3-pointers for the Pistons,
who made half their 12 shots from long range.

Loy Vaught scored 14 points, Jerome Williams collected 12 and
Lindsay Hunter added 10 for Detroit, which fell one point shy of
its highest total of the season. The Pistons' bench outscored
the Raptors' reserves, 54-39.

"It was great having Joe out there," said Vaught. "He did a lot
of playing tonight but he also did a lot coaching out there. He
gets everybody in the right spots and then he finds them."

Things got ugly for the Raptors in the fourth quarter as they
were outscored 32-15 during extended garbage time. Stackhouse
hit a 17-footer and Jud Buechler buried a 3-pointer to open a
96-75 lead with 3:58 to play.

"They made a run and we didn't fight back," said Toronto forward
Charles Oakley. "They kept building, like a house. You put the
foundation down, you put the wood up and then sit back and
relax."

Charles O'Bannon's layup with 2:11 to go extended the bulge to
an embarrassing 104-77. Detroit's previous largest margin of
victory came in a 95-81 season-opening win at Miami.